Wallabies stick to attacking approach

Hooker Stephen Moore admits the Wallabies are still working on defining their ideal game plan in the Ewen McKenzie coaching era.

Hooker Stephen Moore says the Wallabies are still working on defining their ideal game plan in the Ewen McKenzie era.

Australia claimed their first win under McKenzie with a hard-fought, one-point victory over Argentina in Perth a fortnight ago in a much-improved display from the drubbing received at the hands of the South Africa a week earlier.

Ahead of Saturday's rematch with the Springboks at Newlands, Moore says the team is in much better shape this time and will now look to build on the positive momentum gained from the win over the Pumas.

"We didn't play with as much clarity as we would like to have in Brisbane," Moore told the press in Cape Town on Tuesday.

"We spoke about things beforehand that we didn't get to do when the pressure was on. But it was a good thing for the squad because there was a bit more clarity against Argentina, and we were able to win. We just have to continue to chip away at those things.

"We know we drained a lot of juice in Brisbane in the first half without getting any reward. That was why we were out of it later in the game. We have to get a better balance to what we want to do, although our mindset will remain an attacking one.

"The Boks will stick to what they know, which means they will play for field position and look to put us under pressure in our half. The challenge for us is to make sure we play at the right end of the field.

"We definitely needed that win in Perth. We know it wasn't pretty, but it was good to get the result, and it is amazing how the self-belief starts flooding back after just one positive result. It has put us in a completely different mind-space from where we might have been for this trip.

"I don't suppose you need much guessing to figure where we need to get it right. We have to get the scrum fixed. It really wasn't good the last time we played against South Africa and we have worked hard on getting that right.

"We know that playing in front of the Newlands crowd will be a big help to them so that makes it even more important that we start well.

"There will be a lot of balls in the air early on, there will be a lot of physical contact from the Boks. That is the way they play, and they will be looking to get on top of us early. What we have to ensure is that we come out on the right side of the early onslaught and then focus on matching them physically for the entire 80 minutes."